Just a Christian guy trying to do the best he can with what he has

R.I.P Monty Oum, an absolute creative genius

Monty Oum, one of the creative geniuses behind internet sensations Red Vs Blue and RWBY, passed away Sunday afternoon after never waking up from a coma, following what was supposed to be a simple medical procedure. And I am absolutely gutted.

I never met Monty Oum, and I was never really one to get upset when celebrities pass away, but this has hit me hard. I absolutely loved RWBY, it was a true work of art. It was funny, well animated, and portrayed a fantastic world that whilst was seemingly black and white in terms of good and evil, had 4 amazing female leads who wanted to show their world what it can be. Indeed one short exchange in the first season captured what I loved so much about the show:

Blake:Hoping you live happily ever after?Ruby:Well I’m hoping we all will. As a girl, I wanted to be just like those heroes in the books. Someone who fought for what was right, and who protected people who couldn’t protect themselves.Blake:That’s very ambitious for a child. Unfortunately the real world isn’t the same as a fairy tale.Ruby:Well that’s why we’re here, to make it better.

His passing has not only struck home how life can be unexpectedly and tragically cut short (he was my age), but how much the labours of love of other people can have such an impact on us. RWBY and Red Vs Blue are pretty much the only shows in current production that I watch every week without fail (with the exception of Top Gear), since Buffy The Vampire Slayer. It touched me, grabbed me, lifted me and took me on a magical ride for 15 minutes a week, and that is a testament to the absolute genius of Monty Oum and everyone who worked on the series. It was one of my escapes into a world where there are heroes out there wanting to make the world a better place, taking me from my world of struggling with S.A.D and other dark corners.

For me, Monty Oum was an absolute creative genius who made the world a better place with with his work. I will be watching RWBY and Red Vs Blue to help cheer me up after this evenings news. I think we all want to leave a mark on the world, for us to be remembered. Monty Oum has done that in absolute spades and more and I think his friends at Rooster Teeth have put it best:

Use your imagination to make the world a better place in any way that you can. If you know Monty like we do, then you know he would certainly be doing that if he were able to.